Imagine embarking on a thrilling 2-day adventure deep within the lush jungles of Vietnam, crossing rivers and sleeping in the depths of the world’s third-largest cave. It’s an experience shrouded in mystery and beckoning to the intrepid explorer within you. Welcome to Hang En Cave in Phong Nha, where untold wonders await those bold enough to answer its call.
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What is Hang En Cave?
Hang En Cave is one of the world’s largest caves, located in Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park in Vietnam. It is renowned for its immense size, stunning limestone formations, and unique ecosystem.
Hang En Cave is famous for its massive caverns, underground rivers, and unique biodiversity. It offers visitors the opportunity to explore its vast chambers, marvel at its natural beauty, and spend the night in its depths, awakening to the underground mysteries.
One of the features that make Hang En Cave unique is the captivating phenomenon of sunlight beams filtering in through the upper entrance. However, this mesmerizing display of natural illumination is a relatively rare occurrence. Such enchanting scenes typically only unfold on crisp winter mornings, adding to the cave’s allure and offering visitors a truly unforgettable experience.
Why visiting Hang En Cave?
There is a bunch of reasons why you should consider adding the Hang En Cave to your Vietnam itinerary.
Firstly, Hang En is located in Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng, the country’s largest national park and one of Vietnam’s most breathtaking destinations. Hiking through this scenery is an absolute treat.
Secondly, the cave itself is truly extraordinary. Its sheer size is remarkable, earning Hang En the title of the third-largest cave in the world by volume.
Lastly, the adventure-packed experience of navigating rivers, visiting remote villages, and spending a night camping in a cave creates unforgettable memories that add significant depth to your trip.
How to get there?
The trek to Hang En Cave begins in Phong Nha, in Central Vietnam. Accessible by bus from major cities like Hue, Ninh Binh, Hanoi, and others, Phong Nha serves as the gateway to this spectacular adventure.
Let’s clarify. Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park is a restricted area in Vietnam, and hiking within the park without an official permit is prohibited. If caught by locals or guides, serious consequences may follow.
While it’s technically possible to apply for a permit independently, the process may take a long time and you’ll be asked to provide many information regarding your trip. Therefore, the easiest and most common way to visit Hang En Cave is by joining a tour.
Interestingly, only one provider organizes tours to Hang En Cave. In fact, there are only four tour companies in Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park, and each cave is exclusively assigned to one of these companies.
Fortunately, the tour company that manages Hang En Cave is widely regarded as the most competent in the country.
Hang En Cave – Trek Details
The trek to reach the Hang En Cave is about 25km long (including 3km of caving). The total elevation gain is about 650m, and the trek includes river crossings, jungle paths, and rocky terrain, with some sections being steep and challenging.
It’s considered a moderate to strenuous trek, requiring participants to be in good physical condition and have some hiking experience. Below is a scheme of the hike elevation profile, provided by Oxalis.
As you can see, the trail on the first day leads downward into the valley, offering a steep yet relatively easy descent. The overnight stay is within the majestic confines of Hang En Cave. However, the second day presents a more demanding ascent, particularly towards the latter part of the hike.
What adds to the challenge are the numerous river crossings, necessitating navigation through water and resulting in consistently wet footwear and clothing throughout the journey.
Our experience hiking to Hang En Cave
Preparing for the Hang En Cave trek is essential for a successful journey into this breathtaking cavern. Here’s a detailed breakdown of what you need to do:
1) Preparation
The journey to Hang En Cave kicks off with an early rendezvous at the Oxalis headquarters in Phong Nha. Here, a maximum of 16 adventurers gather to meet their local guides and receive a comprehensive briefing on the adventure that lies ahead. The briefing is captivating, detailing the primary challenges that lie along the path.
Next, each participant is issued a distinctive red backpack, intended for essential items needed upon reaching the cave. This pack, weighing ideally no more than 3 to 4 kilograms, is entrusted to porters who transport it directly to the cave, inaccessible until arrival.
You will need 2 sets of long pants and long sleeved shirts to wear during the trek. Additional items should be divided this way:
- A medium-size backpack, helmet, water bottle
- Camera, smartphone
- Personal medicines
- Personal items (mosquito repellent, snacks, sun cream, hat, sunglasses)
- 1 spare set of clothes to wear at the campsite
- 1 towel, 1 swimming suit
- Socks and underwear
- 1 warm jacket (if needed)
- Sandals to wear at campsite (basic sandals are provided anyways)
- Other personal items (toiletries)
While basic jungle boots are provided, you can also choose to use your own hiking shoes. These jungle boots, although suitable for river crossings, aren’t the best in terms of comfort for an extensive trek.
Once all your items and your larger backpack are secured in lockers at the headquarters, a van will transport you to the hike’s starting point. Enjoy the scenic hour-long drive before embarking on your trek.
2) Trek to Doong Village
The trek to Doong Village begins with a steep descent into the valley, winding through lush vegetation typical of the national park.
This leg of the journey typically takes around 1.5 hours, with occasional steep sections that may pose a challenge, especially in wet conditions. Be cautious of muddy and slippery terrain.
Once you reach the bottom of the valley, the trek becomes flat but it involves several river crossings. While the initial crossings are shallow, expect your feet to be wet from now on.
Something we quickly became familiar with were the leeches. We had been warned about the presence of these little animals, but we definitely didn’t expect to see so many. Some of us had multiple of them on our legs at the same time, and we always had to keep an eye on them, trying to spot them before it was too late.
It quickly became clear why you need long sleeves and pants. Long socks are particularly important as you need to put them on top of your trousers to prevent leeches from reaching your skin.
Avoiding the itchy plant became a lesson we learned early on. Despite its innocuous appearance, this plant blends seamlessly into the jungle foliage, making it tricky to identify. It took us some time to distinguish it from other plants and learn to steer clear of it to avoid any discomfort.
The journey continued through dense jungle, at times intertwining with the stream. After traversing this captivating landscape, our path led us to the tranquil haven of Doong Village, where the rhythm of rural life awaited us.
3) Ban Doong Village
Ban Doong Village is a village located deep within the jungle of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in Vietnam. This remote settlement is home to the Bru Van Kieu ethnic minority, and it is accessible only by trekking through dense forests and crossing rivers. About 50-60 people live here permanently.
Visitors to Ban Doong Village have the opportunity to learn about the traditional lifestyle and culture of the villagers, see stilt houses, and even have lunch with the residents. It offers a glimpse into a way of life that’s deeply connected to the surrounding natural environment.
Walking through this village is truly eye-opening. This village exists long before the establishment of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, which is why these people are allowed to live here.
To truly understand life in this village, picture yourself as one of its residents. You’re born here, attend the village school, and reaching the nearest road requires a demanding two-hour trek uphill.
Life truly revolves around the jungle—you grow up here, your friends are here, and your educational opportunities are limited to this environment.
3) Trek to Hang En Cave
After a lunch break at Doong Village, we continued our hike towards Hang En. This leg of the trek is longer than the one of the morning, but it’s entirely flat and quite pleasant.
The views open up, the jungle becomes less thick and the water level in the rivers rises.
After a few hours of trekking, you’ll see Hang En Cave off in the distance. But don’t get too excited just yet—it’s still about 45 minutes away.
As you continue, you’ll find yourself crossing the river multiple times on your way to the cave. The water gets deeper as you approach, varying in depth depending on the season. During our visit, it reached thigh-height.
4) Hang En Cave
Reaching the cave was a moment filled with wonder, albeit with a surprising twist. Despite spotting the grand entrance from a distance during our final hour of trekking, accessing the cave wasn’t as straightforward as we initially thought.
Instead of walking through the imposing main entrance, we veered to the right and discovered a smaller opening that led us into the heart of the cave.
Once inside, it was time to don the helmets we’d been given.
Luckily the helmet had headlights attached, which came in handy because the cave was really dark. Without the light, it would have been difficult to find our way through the streams and rocky areas inside the cave.
After a brief trek, we started a small ascent inside the cave. Before long, we reached a spot that offered a stunning view of the camping area below where we would spend our night.
It’s difficult to put into words or fully grasp just how immense Hang En truly is. From this vantage point, we could see the camping site, the porters’ camp, and various other structures.
Yet, what eludes the eye is the extent of the cave’s continuation. To both the right and left sides, the cave stretches further into the mountain, disappearing into the depths beyond our sight.
FUN FACT: The only way to access the other side of the lake is by raft.
Evening in the cave
When we arrived, there were hot tea and coffee waiting for us. We had plenty of time to swim in the beautiful emerald lake in front of the camp. Surprisingly, there was also a hot sauna!
We made sure to set aside our wet clothes, change into dry ones, and get ready to unwind for the evening.
For dinner, we enjoyed a delicious meal prepared by the attentive staff inside the cave. Later, we gathered around the bonfire, chatting and munching on peanuts and sweet potatoes. It was a wonderful evening spent with new friends.
The next morning
We woke up bright and early, eager to catch a glimpse of the famous sunbeams. This extraordinary phenomenon only happens in the mornings from December to March, and only on sunny days. With the disappointing weather from the previous day, our hopes were not high. But then, something unexpected happened…
We quickly prepared ourselves and hurried to the small hill behind the campsite for a better view, and it was totally worth the rush.
5) Morning trek inside Hang En
From this vantage point, we could also see the morning trek ahead, leading upward and deeper into the cave.
Indeed, the second day’s morning began with a trek through the Hang En Cave. Here, we had the opportunity to learn about the cave’s history, marvel at ancient corals, and admire stunning formations.
The hike continued in pitch darkness until we reached another highlight of the cave: the Hang En exit.
As we approached the exit, a breathtaking scene unfolded before us, bathed in the gentle glow of natural light filtering through the cavernous opening. This spot, with its dramatic juxtaposition of light and shadow, has earned its reputation as one of the most coveted photography spots in all of Hang En.
Once we had soaked in the beauty of the spot, we made our way back to the camp through a different path. It was a shorter route, and soon we were back where we started.
But remember, it’s pretty dark in this section, and you’ll need to cross more rivers, so be ready for that.
6) The way back
When we returned from the morning hike, we were greeted with yet another delicious meal, the third one we had enjoyed in the cave.
This break was much appreciated, especially considering we were gearing up for an 11+ kilometer hike back to the main road.
Even though we took a different and slightly longer route back, the journey resembled the first day’s path quite closely. There were more river crossings, more soggy feet, and more jungle to navigate through.
The main difference came in the final leg of the hike. It was a steep, 45-minute ascent up a hill with no breaks and a significant incline. It was undoubtedly the toughest part of the hike, but with a bit of training, it was manageable.
7) The end!
What better way to cap off a two-day trek deep in the jungles of Vietnam than with a cold beer by the roadside? But first, a leeches check! We definitely didn’t want to bring any of those critters back with us to the bus or headquarters.
Once we were all clear of leeches, we gathered to share a beer and change into more comfortable clothes. Then, we hopped on the bus and headed back to Phong Nha, reflecting on the incredible adventure we had just experienced.
Before booking: things to consider
Before embarking on the Hang En Cave adventure, here are some key points to consider, both positive and negative:
- It’s less physically demanding than you might anticipate. Despite covering 25 kilometers with river crossings and prior experience checks, the hike itself isn’t overly strenuous, except for the final incline on the return journey.
- You’ll experience constant dampness. While you can mentally prepare for this, having wet feet throughout the trip isn’t particularly pleasant.
- There’s no phone coverage. This may seem obvious, but it’s essential to note that you won’t have any data signal for the duration of the adventure.
- There’s no alternate route. In case of emergencies or injuries, the only way back is retracing the path you’ve already traveled. The staff is incredibly supportive and will assist you if needed, but it’s crucial to ensure you’re physically capable of the trek.
- The trail might be muddy, very muddy. Especially after heavy rainfall in fact, the soil of the Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng national park gets incredibly sticky and slippery.
Cost of visiting Hang En Cave
The Hang En Cave Adventure costs 7,600,000 VND (approximately US$317) per person.
While the tour may not be cheap, especially by Vietnamese standards, we have to acknowledge that the organization lived up to our expectations. It’s remarkable to think that for the Hang En Cave tour alone, there are approximately 50 staff members, including guides, porters, chefs, and safety assistants, dedicated to serving a group of just 16 people.
This adventure is available only from December to mid-September each year. Tours are open for sale on a fixed schedule, and individuals have the option to join alone or as part of a group.
Booking the Hang En Cave Trek
Visiting Hang En Cave requires some advance planning. Although it’s not a budget-friendly tour, spots fill up fast. Availability is limited, with a narrow 9-month window for visits, and tours aren’t offered every day.
Depending on the season, booking a few weeks to a couple of months ahead may be necessary. While this might seem like a long time, consider that the neighboring Son Doong Cave, the world’s largest, gets fully booked a year in advance at over $3,000 USD per person.
How to book the tour
Booking the tour is exclusively through the official Oxalis website. You’ll need to complete a form, sharing details about your past trekking experiences and even providing photos to demonstrate your physical condition.
Before receiving a payment link, expect a follow-up call from an Oxalis representative to double-check all the details. This extra step ensures that participants are well-prepared and experienced, a precaution taken in response to past incidents.
Best time to visit Hang En Cave
Note: The Hang En Cave Adventure tour is only available between December and mid-September.
The Hang En Cave is located in Quang Binh, central Vietnam, and it experiences a tropical climate with distinct seasons: dry season and rainy season:
Dry Season: This season typically spans from February to August. During this time, the weather is generally warm and dry. Temperatures gradually rise from the cooler late winter months to warmer conditions in spring and early summer.
Rainy Season: The rainy season typically occurs from September to January. This period sees increased rainfall and higher humidity levels. The weather can be characterized by frequent afternoon showers, thunderstorms, and occasional typhoons, particularly in the later months.
Here is an in-depth look:
From December to March, the area experiences chilly weather, yet occasional warm, sunny days offer respite. This is the time of the year when Hang En gets blessed by the stunning sunbeams you saw in the pictures.
April and May mark the onset of spring, characterized by mild temperatures and vibrant blossoms adorning the landscape.
June through August heralds the hot summer season, though visitors largely find relief from the heat while exploring the caves and jungles. Swimming inside the caves becomes particularly inviting during these months.
When exactly did you do the trek?
Hi Kerstin,
we’ve done the trek in mid January, 2024.